I love to drive. My present to myself from 'The Tudors' was a red Mazda MX5 hard-top convertible. I loved that car, and also what she represented - my first success.

You can think what you like of Madonna - about her political choices and her PR - but you have to respect her courage not to let the critics stop her exploring her potential.

So many little girls dream about their wedding day. But with actresses, sometimes it's the inverse, because we get to be the centre of attention, looked up and down, dressed up for premieres all the time. The pull isn't quite as great.

For me, it's not necessarily interesting to play a strong, fearless woman. It's interesting to play a woman who is terrified and then overcomes that fear. It's about the journey. Courage is not the absence of fear, it's overcoming it.

A lot of boys in my poker circle are mathematicians who play on probability. I don't have that kind of brain, so I rely on instinct. But I recently found out that poker and cards in general go way back in my family gene pool.

What makes me really happy is a walk in the English countryside. A nice sunset, that British countryside - it means I'm home.

I'm a feminist in the true sense of the word. It's about equality.

I think the beauty of the writing of 'Game of Thrones' is not that the characters are fearless; it's how they overcome their fear, you know?

I'm a feminist in the true sense of the word. It's about equality.